Manufacture of planished iron and steel.



UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

XVALLAOE O. DICKEY, OF PITTSBURG, PENNSYLVANIA.

MANUFACTURE OF PLANISHED IRON AND STEEL.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 630,867, dated August15, 1899.

Application filed May 13, 1899. Serial No. 716,764. (No specimens.)

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Be it known that I, WALLACE C. DIOKEY, a citizen of the United States ofAmerica, and a resident of Pittsburg, in the county of Allegheny andState of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvementsin the Manufacture of Iron and Steel, of which the following is aspecification.

This invention relates to improvements in the manufacture of planishedsheet iron and steel.

The objects of the invention are the prod action of a much betterquality of goods at reduced cost.

The invention consists in subjecting the sheets to the steam-bluingprocess, in connection with the other parts in the method, in themanufacture of sheet iron and steel.

Heretofore the steam-bluing has not been employed in the methods orprocesses as they are practiced. I have discovered that by applying themethods and means in practice to the steam-blued sheets a much betterarticle is made, more uniform in color, and that does not rust orcorrode as readily under exposure. The steam-bluing gives them aferrous-oxid surface that resists corrosion most excellently.

In carrying out my improvement I proceed as follows: The sheets arerolled in the usual manner either by the tight or loose rolling process.These sheets are then annealed in a box-annealing furnace at customaryheats. Instead of laying the sheets down on their sides, as generallypracticed, I stand them on their edges and preferably, though notnecessarily, fill the annealing-box with some hydrocarbon gas during theannealing process. When sufficiently annealed, the box is withdrawn fromthe furnace and allowed to cool slightly, keeping the edges welltogether to exclude free access of air. Then I introduce a jet ofsuperheated steam, care being taken that it is free from oil or anyforeign matter that would tend to create a film of carbonaceous matter,akin to or similar tolampblack, as a deposit on the surface of thesheets, into the box and maintain it there until the temperature isreduced to about 300 to 400 Fahrenheit, and then cut it off, allowingthe box to cool down thereafter in the usual way. The cover of the boxis then removed and the sheets will be found to have a uniform bluecolor over their entire surfaces, being a ferrous-oxid coating andexcellent to resist corrosion. I then paint or coat the sheets with acomposition of graphite and the oxid or salts of tin or lead, or both,in proportion of about ten per cent. of graphite and an equal proportionof the oxid of tin to about eighty per cent. of the oxid of lead or tenper cent. of graphite to ninety of lead alone, by weight. This may bedone by dipping the sheets into a vat or tank containing the abovecomposition held in solution by some quick drying fluid, preferablygasolene, or it may be spread on with a brush or by passing the sheetsbetween rolls covered with cloth upon which the mixture is spread. Thesheets are then made up into packs of thirty to sixty sheets, placed inan ordinary reverberatory furnace and heated to a high red heat, andthen planished in the packs by hammers or may be brought to a polish bypassing singly or in pairs, or more, between heavy rolls. If they arefound not sufficiently polished by once hammering, the packs may beopened, exposing the sheets to the air While still slightly red, whenthey are repacked, reheated, and again hammered or rolled. They may thenbe taken to the shears, trimmed, and packed for the market. Sheetstreated in this manner will be found to have acquired a high degree ofluster, closely resembling the so called Russia iron, and will wearextremely well under heat or exposure.

Having now described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure byLetters Patent, is

The improvement in the manufacture of planished sheet iron and steel,consisting, first, in annealing the sheets in the usual manner; second,subjecting the sheets to the steam-bluing process to form a ferrous-oxidcoating; third, coating such sheets by applying a mixture of graphiteand the oxid or salts of tin or lead, or both, and fourth, planishingsaid sheets by hammering or passing through rolls, substantially asdescribed.

Signed by me, at Cleveland, Ohio, this 12th day of May, 1899.

IVALLACE O. DIOKEY.

Witnesses:

GEO. W. TIBBITTS, CHARLES L. STooKER.

